Barbara McCauley - Midnight Bride

He hesitated a moment, and she felt as if he were looking into her very soul, reading her deepest, darkest secrets. Secrets she didn’t even know.

“Do you remember this?” he asked, and ran his hand up her arm, then traced her collarbone with his fingers. Her heart began to race, and her breathing came in short, quick gasps. “Or maybe you remember this?”

His hand dropped lower, very slowly unbuttoning the top button of the shirt she wore. His knuckles brushed the swell of her breast, but his dark gaze never left hers. Her skin tightened, her body came alive with a mind all of its own. Heat coursed through her, a mixture of embarrassment and—what? Desire?

No, she didn’t remember him, and this most certainly was not familiar. She couldn’t speak, all she could do was shake her head.

He stopped. So did her breathing. He watched her for a long moment, then refastened the button and inched away. Reluctantly, she thought.

“I don’t understand,” she muttered. “What’s happened to me?”

“You hit your head,” he said. “You were…out in the storm and fell.”

The storm. She looked toward the window, stared at the rain beating against the panes…

She was falling…falling. River. Cold.

She sat up quickly, then squeezed her eyes shut and gasped at the pain that shot through her head.

“Lie back,” the man—Caleb—said. “Here, take these.” He reached toward the nightstand, then pressed something into her mouth. Aspirin. His touch was gentle, and she didn’t resist when he held the glass to her lips. She swallowed, coughing as the tablets went down her throat.

“Get some rest now.” Caleb slipped out from under the covers. She almost reached for him, felt frightened and cold with him gone. She clutched the blankets to her instead, wishing the blasted pounding in her head would stop.

And as the medication slowly took effect, she slipped into blessed sleep with a strange image. Her bare skin, wet and slick, against Caleb’s.

Caleb stared out the kitchen window, listening to the coffee percolate as the sky transformed from inky black to dusty gray. Rain fell steadily, alternating between hail and sleet, though not with the intensity of the night before. The thunder had moved north and was no more than an occasional distant rumble. He knew from experience the storm wasn’t finished just yet. Before the day was through, there would undoubtedly be another assault.

And before the day was through, he also intended to have some answers.

Sarah. He glanced at the wall separating the kitchen from the bedroom. He wasn’t even sure that was her name, but for now it would have to do.

A scratch at the back door caught Caleb’s attention, and he let a soggy Wolf inside. The animal gave himself a shake, then padded across the kitchen into the living room. Caleb frowned at the paw prints on the hardwood floor. They had an understanding, he and Wolf. Caleb kept his food bowl filled, and the animal in turn kept unwanted visitors, human or otherwise, at bay.

Until last night.

With a sigh, he poured himself a cup of coffee, then sat at the kitchen table and ran a hand over the beginning stubble of a beard. So what did he know about his midnight intruder? She was probably in her midtwenties, approximately five foot three, maybe 110 pounds dripping wet, shoulder-length pale blond hair. Blue eyes. He remembered his initial reaction to those eyes, then frowned and continued his evaluation. Identifying marks: one small scar on her inside right elbow, approximately two and a half centimeters, and a small, heart-shaped mole on her left thigh. Caleb smiled. A very nicely shaped thigh at that, but he doubted that his mystery woman would appreciate that opinion.

She hadn’t been dressed for a hike in the mountains, carried no identification, wore no wedding band. Her hands and legs were badly scratched, and she had a minor laceration behind her left ear.

And no memory.

He leaned back in his chair and took a swallow of the strong coffee. She was either telling the truth about not knowing who she was or was one hell of a good liar. He’d made up the story about being her husband and climbed into bed with her just to rattle her. Instead, he’d been the one rattled. The innocence that had shimmered from her was like a punch in the gut.

True, he’d been without female companionship for a long time, but he’d never remembered any woman being so soft, so delicate, or smelling so sweet. No woman had ever looked at him with such complete trust. Or made him feel like such a complete heel. He’d spent the rest of the night on the couch, alternating between sleep and listening for any sounds from the bedroom, but there’d been nothing.

If she hadn’t been sent here to find him, then who the hell was she? Beautiful women didn’t just fall out of the sky. He was more than a mile in from the main road, and the closest rental cabin was more than two miles away. She couldn’t have walked. Not in this storm. She had to have a car somewhere. Or be with someone who had a car.

Please don’t let them find me, she’d said.

Don’t let who find her? And why had she begged him not to call the police or a doctor? Caleb narrowed his eyes as he stared at the steam rising from his coffee. If he was being set up, she was doing one hell of a job.

Which gave him all the more reason not to trust her.

He shoved his cup aside. He’d go back down to the creek later when the storm eased and check out the area. But right now he had lots of questions and no patience. It was time for Sleeping Beauty to wake up. He rose and headed for the bedroom.

Her scream stopped him halfway.

Sarah threw the covers over her head and attempted to burrow herself into the bed. When she felt the mattress dip, she screamed again.

“Sarah!” Strong, large hands grabbed her shoulders. “What’s the matter?”

“An animal!” She buried herself as deeply under the blankets as possible. “There’s a wild animal in your bedroom!”

The hands stilled, then she heard a deep chuckle. “It’s only Wolf.”

“A wolf!” She huddled closer to Caleb. “Shootit!”

Caleb tugged at the blankets. “Come out from under there.”

And be eaten alive? Was he crazy? She hugged the covers tighter.

Caleb yanked the covers off.

Sarah squeezed her eyes shut. When the beast barked, she hollered and launched herself at Caleb, which sent them both sprawling on the floor. Caleb landed on his back, with Sarah on top of him.

“Sarah!” He rolled her underneath him. “For God’s sake, will you stop!”

At the sound of a deep growl inches away from her ear, Sarah went completely still. Her heart stopped, she couldn’t breathe. And with Caleb’s body on top of hers, she couldn’t move. Slowly she opened her eyes.

Golden wolf eyes stared back.

With a whimper, Sarah turned her head. The cold hardwood floor pressed against her cheek. Caleb’s hands circled her wrists and held them firmly to her sides. She felt herself go limp, heard the animal bark again, but it sounded far away this time, as if she were in a metal drum…

Don’t let her get away, dammit! Kill her if you have to, but don’t let her get away!

Kill her…kill her…kill her…

“Sarah.”

She heard someone calling gently. Sarah? Was that her name? The man, Caleb, had told her it was. He called to her again, and her eyelids fluttered open.

“Sarah,” he said again, “this is Wolf. He won’t hurt you.”

She turned her head slowly toward the animal. It cocked its massive black head as it stared down curiously at her. Panic washed through her, and she struggled to free her arms.